Complications and a Gleeful Cyrano
by janeywrite66
Summary: A story of how Blaine and Kurt find one another, and help re-unite Finchel. Rated T for angsty longing, a little light swearing and fluffiness. Read and Review. Slightly AU.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This story will follow the courtship of Blaine and Kurt, who I think are just too adorable for words. It is also slightly Finchel. I have most of the next chapter written, but I needed to adjust a few things after the last episode. Fortunately, I will have six weeks to progress Kurt/Blaine's relationship as I see fit. Unfortunately, that means there's no Glee to enjoy for a loooong time! This is slightly set-up by the Kurt/Blaine drabbles in my other story, but you don't need to read them to enjoy this.

Disclaimer: I own neither Glee nor _Cyrano de Bergerac_.

Chapter 1

Blaine wasn't looking for Kurt, exactly. It was just that he hadn't been at dinner, and he wasn't in his dorm room, so what kind of friend would he be if he didn't check up on the new boy? After all, Kurt hadn't exactly transferred to Dalton for its superior academics—he was escaping a death threat. So it would make perfect sense if he felt a little lost or even scared. And the last thing Blaine wanted was for Kurt to be unhappy here, too.

He pushed open the door to the library and was relieved to see Kurt huddled over a desk in the corner.

"Hey," he said softly. "We missed you at dinner."

Kurt shrugged and looked up from his French book. "I'm way behind in a lot of my classes," he observed mildly. He wasn't being cold, exactly, but Blaine noticed that his face wasn't luminous the way it usually was when they spoke. "I didn't think anyone would notice, honestly." With a small nod, he turned back to his book.

Blaine admitted to himself that he missed feeling the warmth and wonder Kurt usually exerted around him. He wanted to scream 'are we ok?,' but figured it was better to play it a little cool. "I think you can probably take a break, now," he tried instead. "It's only Monday. Come on, I'll walk you back to your room—I snuck you a helping of pumpkin pie from the dessert table. You should eat it."

Kurt knew it was petty to ignore Blaine this way ('the way you did Mercedes the second Blaine hit your radar' his conscience reminded him slyly), but he was still angry with the tenor. After all, he had been invited to sing a solo. A real friend would have given him a heads-up that it was only a "pity" audition.

"Yeah, I guess," he commented as casually as he could. Without actually looking at Blaine, he gathered together his things and stood. "Thanks for the pie," he offered, and then immediately berated himself internally for being gauche.

They walked awkwardly down the hall together. Kurt tried hard not to notice how cute Blaine looked in his "after school" clothes, also known as a pair of khakis and a Gryffindor t-shirt with a blue hoodie. It wasn't high-fashion, but it all fit well and Blaine looked very comfortable.

"Hey, have you heard from your step-brother's girlfriend since Sectionals?" Blaine blurted, trying to bring them back into friendly territory. "She seemed really cool when we saw her."

"She's a self-important diva," Kurt snapped back out of habit, but softened immediately. "But, yeah, she can be pretty awesome at times. She tried to protect me back at McKinley when it got out how bad the bullying had gotten. And she actually was good with my step-brother. It's a shame they broke up."

"Oh, why?"

"According to Mercedes, because Rachel hit Finn right where it hurt. She kissed the guy who got his last girlfriend pregnant."

Blaine whistled under his breath. "This is complicated."

"You have NO idea," Kurt asserted as they reached his single and he opened the door, gesturing Blaine inside. It was tiny, only had a sliver of a window near the top of one wall, and Kurt suspected it might actually have been a utility closet before they moved in the bed and small desk, but the administration hadn't had any other place to put him in the middle of a term, and he actually appreciated the privacy. "The sad part is that Rachel drives me crazy, but she really did make Finn happy. She just didn't think before she acted. Thus the diva part." He rolled his eyes.

Blaine smiled. The Kurt he knew and…liked…was back with a vengeance. He was animatedly gesturing as he explained, and eating the pie that had been sitting on the desk in small, precise bites. "What are you going to do for the rest of the night," he asked, hoping that maybe they could hang out and get back onto friendly footing.

"Mercedes and I are supposed to Skype in a little bit, and then I have to read two chapters of _Cyrano de Bergerac_ for French. IN FRENCH. Why did I want to come here, again?"

Wanting to keep the conversation lighthearted, Blaine offered, "Cute boys and no female distractions?"

"Oh, right." Kurt smiled. "What are you doing tonight?"

"Hanging out with you until you finish that pie, which at the rate you're eating, means I'm going to be here a while." Obediently, Kurt picked up his fork and began to eat again. "Tell me about Cyrano de Bergerac," Blaine asked. "I've heard of it, but I take German, so I'm not really familiar with the story."

"Oh, it's about this guy who's a brilliant poet but has an enormous nose. He's in love with his cousin, Roxanne, but is terrified to tell her. So he helps this handsome guy, Christian, win her instead with love letters…" Kurt trailed off. He had a brilliant idea. "Blaine, I'm going to be Cyrano for Rachel!"

"What?"

"She's been really nice to me lately, and I know Finn really loves her. Heck, it's why I hated her last year. But I know all the things Finn likes, I mean; I was completely obsessed with him. So I should be able to help her get back into his good graces! I am so totally brilliant. I need to call Mercedes."

"Kurt, hang on a second." Blaine shifted uncomfortably. "What do you mean when you say you were obsessed with Finn?"

"Oh." Kurt pulled up short. It was a little strange to explain to your current enormous crush that you had a giant crush on your step-brother once upon a time. "Um, you know things were really bad at McKinley. Everybody was horrible to me, even before the death threats. Finn tried to get some of the guys to back off a little, and I was just…so unused to people being nice to me. I translated my gratitude into an enormous and inappropriate crush." He flushed at the memory. "I was pretty aggressive sometimes, but mostly I was just lonely. We've worked it out, but at one point I gave Rachel a truly horrendous makeover. So if you think about it, I owe her this. And I want Finn to be happy. He deserves it after the hell he went through last year."

Blaine nodded slowly and tried not to squirm at the jealousy flaring in his stomach. It wasn't like he didn't understand, after all. He had his own history with Keith that would probably come up at some point if he and Kurt stayed on their current trajectory. Still, Finn was always going to be around, and Blaine didn't want to think about it too deeply. "I could help you?" he offered (a little too eagerly, his internal critic insisted).

"Really," Kurt asked.

"Sure. I write some songs, so I'm good at poetic stuff. But maybe you should run this idea past Mercedes first." Blaine had already apologized to Kurt's bestie about usurping her position for a while, but he didn't want to get in-between the friends again.

"That's a good idea," Kurt nodded. "I hate to kick you out, but she'll be signing on soon—it's almost 8."

Blaine didn't really want to leave, but he knew that the friends needed alone time, so he immediately vacated the edge of the bed he'd perched on. "I'll see you tomorrow, Kurt. Guess I'll go see what's on in the TV lounge."

"Done with your homework already," Kurt murmured jealously.

"Yup." Blaine limited himself to a friendly pat on Kurt's shoulder and tried not to fantasize about kissing his cheek. With a small sigh, he left to find David and Wes.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Ok. #1 priority: THANK YOU to everyone who read/favorited/reviewed this. What a thrill! I'm really sorry, people. I HATE it when fan fiction writers promise updates and then disappear. I'm not going to stress you out with all the crap I've been doing lately—let's just say it includes snow, international travel, broken bones, family, surgeons, professional obligations, etc, and leave it at that, ok? While I've been gone, there's been a lot of progress on the Klaine front—most of which I hate. Look, I had eight chapters of this planned way back in December. Let's just agree that this is AU, because I love the Blaine I had imagined for Kurt and don't really want to forfeit him (don't get me started on the travesty of Finn). I SHOULD be more frequent with updates since life has slowed down. In this chapter: BICO (hopefully in a non-lame manner?)!**

**Disclaimer: I still own neither Glee_, Cyrano de Bergerac_, nor the song _Baby, It's Cold Outside_.**

Chapter 2:

Mercedes had been surprisingly enthusiastic about the idea of getting Finn back with Rachel, Kurt mused as he tried to focus on the history page in front of him. Of course, he hadn't actually broached the subject with Rachel, since he had found himself buried in an avalanche of work. The teachers at Dalton arranged their curricula so that major projects were due before the winter break and then finals were in the very beginning of January. This nicely balanced the schoolwork for everyone who WASN'T a mid-term transfer. The mere number of papers and projects Kurt had due in the next week made him shudder. In fact (he glanced at his watch), he only had thirty minutes until he had a group project meeting for Chemistry. Thank goodness David was in that class and had some sort of autistic-savant ability to solve equations, since they had to present the results of a chromatography experiment from last week. However, he really didn't have time to worry about that when his European History paper was due tomorrow.

Briefly, Kurt buried his face in his hands and scrubbed. Hard. Transferring from McKinley to Dalton was like being transferred from community college to Harvard. On a surface level, his classes were the same, but the intellectual expectations were worlds apart. Still, Kurt knew that deep down he was enjoying himself. It wasn't just the chance to hang out with Blaine without a two hour drive, either, although it certainly didn't hurt. No, he was starting to feel more comfortable with the other boys, and he was beginning to enjoy the rhythms and quirks of Dalton life, too. With a sigh (of contentment or frustration, even he couldn't identify), Kurt turned back to Charlemagne and tried to catch up.

Outside the door, Blaine leaned on the wall and concentrated on breathing slowly. The only way this would work was if he maintained a casual air. Ok, sure, he was lying to his best friend. But his intentions were honest. He missed Kurt, and he felt really bad about the "audition." So, he could totally pull this off. He placed a steadying hand on his elbow—his hands were shaking really badly—and turned into the room.

"Hey," he breathed as Kurt looked up. And then the world faded to Kurt's face. With as much "game" as he could muster, Blaine convinced him to sing _Baby, It's Cold Outside_ with him. After his initial reluctance, Blaine watched joyfully as the soprano's natural acting ability came to the forefront. Kurt was playful, possibly even flirty, and by the end of singing the duet, Blaine never wanted to stop staring at his friend. He managed to compliment Kurt on his masterful cover and then escaped, blindly pushing past a tall man with curly hair. By the time he reached his dorm room, he was practically running.

_Oh crap_. He liked Kurt. He didn't just like him as a friend, and he didn't just feel like a mentor. No, he recognized these butterflies all too well. This wasn't like Keith—he knew that Kurt wasn't jerking him around. But even trusting Kurt wasn't enough to make the wave of nausea fade. He could feel the panic welling up inside him. At the same time he was completely freaking out, however, it was nice to know that he was still capable of having a crush. It was his first in almost a year, and he'd basically thought that part of him had been destroyed at his last school.

Wes came in, still shouting down the hall to David about their next Halo night. Blaine looked up blindly, but it only took Wes a split second to assess the situation and go into protective mode.

"Dammit, Blaine, what happened?"

"It's nothing," Blaine shook his head determinedly. "I just realized I'm a complete idiot and that I really should be more introspective."

"What does that mean in English?" Wes asked impatiently.

"I like Kurt," Blaine whispered.

Wes laughed. "Really, that's the problem? Man, I thought this was going to be a revelation or something. Everyone knows you're crazy about him. Why on earth do you look like someone killed your cat over a crush? Especially one I'm fairly sure is reciprocated?"

"I haven't liked anyone in over a year," Blaine admitted sadly. Wes stared at him blankly.

"Wait a second; you're saying that since Keith there's been no one…" Wes trailed off awkwardly as Blaine shook his head. "That's freaking ridiculous, Blaine. I know they messed you up, and I know it was horrible. I still think you should have pressed charges. But you are ALLOWED to have a crush. Didn't your shrink cover this?"

Blaine managed a laugh at the question. "Being allowed to and wanting to are completely different things, Wes. I really can't handle thinking about Kurt ridiculing me and exposing me that way."

Wes got right into his face. "He wouldn't, Blaine. Kurt is far too nice a guy to ever hurt you like that. When you first got here, I understood why you equated relationships with hell, but Kurt has never been less than extraordinarily great to you. Maybe you should trust him a little more? I admit that I don't really know the guy, but from what you've told me about his old school and his situation, you have absolutely nothing to worry about."

Blaine just shrugged at him hopelessly.

"Are you done with your homework?" Wes finally asked.

"Yes," Blaine whispered.

"Ok, then hang tight while I call reinforcements," Wes murmured. "Are we watching _The Music Man _or _The Man in the Iron Mask_?"

"Best friends ever," Blaine answered. Wes just saluted as he texted David and Thad.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: This chapter is a little Finchel-centric, because I need to get the Cyrano de Bergerac parallels rolling. The quotation is from the play (act 3 specifically), but I have LIBERALLY translated it to give you a little context as to what they are discussing. Oh yes, and I made the email addresses obviously fake, because I would hate to use someone's real handle by accident! As usual, thank you to anyone who read/reviewed/favorited the story. I love feedback.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own **_**Glee**_** or its characters. I am equally not Edmond Rostand who wrote the play, **_**Cyrano de Bergerac**_**, on which some of my plotline is based.**

Chapter 3:

When he heard his phone signal a new email message, Kurt closed his book and returned from the moonlit balcony in his imagination with a wistful sigh. "C'est un secret qui prend la bouche pour oreille," he murmured to himself, then translated the phrase in his head as A kiss is a secret which uses the mouth, not the ear. The play was so romantic that he could hardly bear it, although he couldn't help but feel sorry for Cyrano. It seemed very clear to him that Roxanne was wasting her time on a beautiful, lovable idiot.

Speaking of lovable idiots, he thought as he opened his email from his stepbrother, then shook his head at his own whimsy. Finn was not really an idiot, just a little slow on the uptake occasionally. He frowned as he focused on the subject line:** Rachel and I are over! **

From:

To:

_Hi Kurt,_

_ I hope you're doing ok at school, bro. I know you said it was really hard. Mom and Burt are really looking forward to having you home this weekend. Mom's got all the Christmas lights out so you can help us hang them up, and she's even making gingerbread houses for us to decorate. It's kind of dorky, but she's excited about our first holiday together. I am trying really hard to stay positive, because I want Christmas to be great this year. _

_But, I guess you guessed from the subject line that I broke up with Rachel. She just keeps expecting me to up and forgive her. I can't believe she's so…ok, look, I know it's not nice to call girls names, but she's being stupid, I swear. She keeps trying to win me back with songs in the auditorium and these little lost puppy-dog looks. Why can't she just leave me alone? Even today, she tried to turn our trip to the Christmas tree lot into some big reunion scene from one of her dippy movies. This is like that damn music video all over again—whatever Rachel wants, she thinks she should get. Am I completely crazy? She REALLY HURT ME, Kurt. I know she didn't sleep with him, but why does every girl I love go flirt with Puck?_

_Anyway, everyone is going to go over to Mr. Shue's house on Thursday after the half-day so we can help him decorate. I still don't understand why we don't have school on Friday, even if it's awesome. Do you think you can drive out and come, too? Or is that the day you have the big Chemistry project? Oh. What do you think I should do with the present I bought Rachel for Christmas? If I give it to her now, she's just going to take it completely the wrong way. _

_Gotta go; Bieste has us putting in extra weight-time since we might make the play-offs. It's really different from last year__, but we still miss you. See you Friday night, bro._

_ Finn_

Kurt finished the email and immediately started swearing internally. Dammit, why couldn't Rachel back off a little? At this rate, she would completely alienate Finn before he even had the chance to start his matchmaking plan. Quickly, he texted Blaine. He needed back-up.

Blaine was just settling down to his pre-calc homework when his phone buzzed.

_Can you come to my room for a little while? We have . business. Plus, I haven't seen you in two days?-Kurt_

Blaine's heart jumped straight into his throat. He fought the urge to run down the hallways until he got to Kurt's room. Kurt had noticed that it had been 2 days? After his realization that he had an enormous crush, Blaine had needed some space, but he really missed his friend. And avoiding him had been harder than it sounded, even on Dalton's large campus. Blaine had been eating in his room (Wes frowned at the mess but kept his critiques to himself) and had even skipped a Warblers practice (Wes had been a little less restrained about criticizing that choice, even when Blaine gave him a fake dentist's note that claimed he had had an emergency root canal to put in the attendance book) until he could regulate his reactions. However, even if he didn't see Kurt, that didn't stop David and Wes from talking about the boy on a regular basis, describing his jokes (that one-liner about Jeff's hair had been hilarious), how his academic work was going (pretty well, actually), even what he was eating (not much). Blaine had protested that he wasn't obsessed, but David just rolled his eyes and Blaine knew he had lapped up all the information like a man dying of thirst. Now the drought had to be over, or Kurt was going to notice that something was up. With feigned nonchalance, Blaine gathered his stuff and started strolling in Kurt's direction.

_Be there in 5-Blaine_

Kurt smiled when he got Blaine's reply. Wes had announced at Warbler's practice yesterday that Blaine was having emergency dental surgery, which sounded awful, especially right before Christmas. Kurt knew that he himself would have been locked in his room for a week until all the swelling was down, so it was nice that Blaine trusted him enough to come over anyway. He had really missed his interactions with the brunette, he admitted to himself. Even though they didn't share any classes, the boys usually waved or chatted between periods, and they ate a meal together at least once a day. This was the longest they'd been apart since Kurt had transferred, and to be honest, Christmas break was probably going to be a special kind of torture. Kurt made a mental note to make sure they scheduled a post-Christmas coffee date before Blaine left tonight. After a week of loneliness, he'd probably be a blubbery idiot. He smiled when he heard the quiet knock.

"Hey," he chirped as he opened the door. He pulled Blaine into a quick hug, and then pulled back to examine his face closely. "You look great; I swear, which side did they operate on? You're not even a little swollen. Did you get to miss any classes?"

Blaine turned ruddy red. "I um, I didn't have a root canal, Kurt."

Kurt raised his eyebrows and let his arms drop. Feeling suddenly cold, he took a step back. "Oh. Wouldn't Wes know if you were lying? He's your roommate."

"He agreed it was an emergency," Blaine said stiffly, and shrugged his shoulders. "I missed you, though," he admitted.

"I missed you, too. Are you going to tell me what happened?"

"Um. I'd really rather not, if it's ok?"

"Yeah, sure. As long as no one in your family is dying or anything!" Kurt tried to sound natural, but his stomach was cramping at Blaine's distance.

Blaine smiled weakly, "Nope, no familial deaths. So….what's going on with Finn and Rachel? You said we had Cyrano business?"

Kurt brightened at the thought of something he could control. "Yes, Rachel is being her normal pushy self and Finn officially broke up with her." He made a face to show his displeasure at that development. "I need help writing her an email that explains our plan."

Blaine perched delicately on the end of the bed. "No offense, Kurt, but maybe you should let this go. Finn and Rachel seem to be a _fait accompli_, and it's not like we're on vacation yet. Maybe you should focus on Dalton and getting great grades so that you can apply for an academic scholarship next semester."

Kurt pursed his lips, "As thrilled as I am that you just used a French phrase, and properly, too, I don't think you understand how much more tolerable both Finn and Rachel are when they are coupled together. Sure, they are disgustingly addicted to PDA, but without each other, they turn into the worst versions of themselves. Isn't that the best definition of love? That you turn into the best version of yourself when you're with the person you love?"

_You mean like how I relax and rediscover my sense of humor when I'm around you, _Blaine don't think you should write her your plan in an email. Too much of a paper trail. If she and Finn DO get back together, it's practically guaranteed he'd find the email and he'd feel manipulated. Then they'd end up broken up again, and there wouldn't be any way to fix it."

Kurt considered this, and nodded. "Well, I guess I could invite her out for coffee or something over the break. I'll be in Lima, and to be honest, I kinda miss the little diva." He raised his eyebrows comically, and Blaine felt the first honest laugh he'd had in over forty-eight hours rip out of his stomach.

Kurt listened to Blaine laugh and thought, _I want_. Then he blushed at the crassness of the sentiment. "Um, I was going to ask you out for coffee over the break anyway, so maybe you could come along? I might get overenthusiastic or something and you could rein me in."

"That would be great," Blaine replied. "Rachel seemed pretty cool at sectionals. I'd like to know her better. Maybe we could invite Mercedes, too. She'd be a great ally for keeping Rachel contained at school, when we won't be around. Plus, I miss her."

Kurt smiled widely. He couldn't explain the contentment that radiated inside him whenever he realized that his two best friends liked each other, but it made him feel safe and happy. "So what are your plans tonight, since you don't have the excuse of dental hibernation anymore?"

Blaine looked carefully, but Kurt seemed sincere. "Um, I've got two pages of math homework and a ton of writing to do on my history paper that's due tomorrow at three."

"Do you want to hang out here?" Kurt asked rather shyly. "I have an English paper I'm still writing, and I obviously need to write Rachel an email invite and BCC Mercedes, but I miss hanging out with you." He ignored how badly his heart was beating, and even managed not to outwardly show the jump it made when Blaine quietly agreed.

"Sure, that sounds great, as long as we agree to a neutral soundtrack—maybe the Killers? I'll go grab my books and some brownies before the cafeteria closes, ok?"

Kurt nodded and Blaine dropped a warm hand on his shoulder before he walked out the door.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: So, in one of the 2 reviews I got for my last chapter ( :(,**** please review?), it was noted that some of my formatting is not translating when I upload. I definitely noticed that my email addresses disappeared (I guess because FF doesn't like links, even if they're fake?), but my italicization is also a little funky, and people are having difficulty deciding whether my characters are speaking out loud. Just to cut down on confusion, I'm going to start putting thoughts into brackets like this [I think this will be a little clearer?]. Texts and email will remain in italics, so I hope that works for everyone? Although, to be honest, that might not be the real problem, because when I reread the last chapter, one sentence had been truncated—and of course it was the one pointed out in my review! I will read my POST, not just the document this time, I promise! Also, yes, I fanwanked Kurt's absence at Mr. Schue's house by moving the date from Christmas Eve to the last day before winter break (which would be Dec 23, right?). I hated that he wasn't there, and we've already agreed that this is AU, remember?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the concepts or characters of Glee, and I'm not being paid to write this.**

When Kurt pulled up to the new Hummel/Hudson house, he was surprised to see Finn sitting on the porch, waiting for him.

"Hey man, what's up?" Finn greeted him cheerfully as he strolled toward the car. Kurt raised his eyebrows in confusion, but Finn just opened the trunk and started pulling our Kurt's luggage. Kurt thought about questioning his step-brother, but decided it was better to accept his strange mood and his presence since it was resulting in bellhop duties.

"Hi Finn," he returned the greeting as he grabbed his toiletries case and laptop bag. "How was the thing at Mr. Shue's yesterday?"

"Oh, it was fun," Finn nodded agreeably. "We missed you, but basically we all just sat around and decorated the tree—sang a couple carols, you know the drill. Coach Sylvester was there, which was a little strange, but it was basically just us Glee kids. Rachel asked how you were doing, though, and she was sorry you had that test." Finn swept his arm to indicate that Kurt should go ahead of him up the stairs to his new bedroom. They struggled through the doorway and Finn threw the heaviest of Kurt's bags on the floor while the older boy carefully placed his toiletries on his mirrored vanity and set down his laptop. He smiled when he saw his queen-sized bed, still as beautifully made up as the day he bought the new linens.

"So, where are Dad and Carole?" Kurt asked, biting his tongue to keep from snapping at Finn to be careful with his things—after all, he had just carted them up the stairs, so it was a little much to ask that he stop being a careless teenager on top of it.

"Mom makes your dad take a twenty-minute walk with her after every meal we eat at home. She says it's good for his heart. He really didn't want to go until you got here. But Mom said it was Christmas Eve and otherwise he was going to have a million excuses not to go at all." Kurt smiled. He really appreciated knowing that Carole was being careful with his Dad's health—one less thing to worry about! "They should be home in about ten minutes."

"We could all go after dinner so Dad doesn't try to skip?" he suggested.

Finn flushed. "Actually, I was kind of hoping you and I could watch a movie or something…just the two of us, you know?"

Kurt sat on his bed with a thump, knocking off one of his throw pillows. "Um Finn, no offense, but we don't usually hang out like that. What's up?"

"It's about Rachel," the tall boy admitted shyly. "I have an idea I want to run past you. Plus, hey, like I said at the wedding, we're Furt now, right? There's no law that step-brothers can't hang out."

"No, there's no law," Kurt agreed, already cringing internally at Finn's upcoming monologue about how much he missed Rachel.

"Hey, Kurt? Kurt buddy, are you home?" his dad suddenly called up the stairs.

"Dad!" Kurt pushed past Finn, bounced down the stairs and practically jumped into his father's waiting arms. [This is what I miss the most at Dalton] he thought as he carefully inspected his dad's face for signs of illness or exhaustion. "You look really good; Carole's taking good care of you."

"I missed you, Kurt," his dad whispered.

"We all missed you," Carole interjected from behind him. Kurt smiled and left Burt's embrace to give his stepmother a hug. "You should come back from that school more often," she murmured. "We need you." Lightening her tone, she joked, "Here it is, Christmas Eve already and I was terrified to put up a single decoration without you!"

"Absolutely the best decision you could have made," Kurt assured her. "Imagine Finn and Dad's whining if we made them hang all the decorations twice!"

* * *

When she heard Blaine's key scrape in the lock, his sister Lauren started down the stairs immediately. "Little bro," she crowed. "God, I missed you!"

"Hey Laur," Blaine hugged his sister tightly. "I like the hair."

She touched her bright green curls and giggled. "Mom almost had a cow, but I told her it's ART SCHOOL. I have to cultivate the image somehow! Besides, it got me out of going to the shelter today so I didn't have a bad influence (she rolled her eyes at the word choice) on any impressionable children. You know how depressed I get when I see those kids."

"Oh, am I too late?" Blaine asked, disappointed.

"Yeah, the administration moved it up to a brunch instead of a lunch because some of the staff complained last year."

"Is Ty there with Mom and Dad?" Blaine asked a little tightly.

Lauren made a face. "Nope, Little Lord Fauntleroy is currently wrapped up in playing on his xbox when he isn't texting some idiotic blonde girl who chortles every fifteen seconds. I don't know how he stands her. I've only been home from school for a week, but she's been here for at least an hour every day and I was contemplating iocaine powder by day two. Tell me we weren't that bratty when we were fourteen?"

Blaine smiled at her reference to _The Princess Bride_, but he shook his head when she asked about Tyler. "Ty's a good kid, Lauren. You know it hasn't been easy for him."

"He doesn't need to PROVE how straight he is, bro. We'd like him either way, and quite frankly I find it insulting to you."

"I don't, so thanks for the thought, but just give him a break. He was twelve, Lauren. Those middle school kids are even worse than the high schoolers, sometimes."

"Well I know you're going to go say hi even if I beg you not to, so when you're done come down to the kitchen and have some of my spectacular hot chocolate with me." She wiggled her eyebrows at him.

"It's a little early in the day to be drinking, don't you think?"

"Please, it's just crème de menthe. I'm in college, so it's practically legal. Plus, Grandmother and Grandfather are coming for a gift exchange after lunch. We will need the help."

Blaine sighed and considered his stormy relationship with the man he'd adored and called Poppa for so many years. "Ok, but no more than two for either of us. And don't forget to make one for Mom."

* * *

After dinner, Finn and Kurt decided to watch_ Elf _in Finn's room while Carole and Burt went on their walk. However, it was a darned good thing that Kurt had seen the movie before, because practically the second the credits had finished rolling, Finn turned to Kurt and said, "Is it okay if we talk now?"

Figuring that it was better to just get it over with than to drag it out, Kurt nodded. "What's on your mind, Finn?" Without a word, Finn reached into his bedside table and pulled out a jewelry box. He handed it to Kurt, who was perched delicately in Finn's desk chair-the only place in the room not covered in dirty clothes or magazines. Kurt opened the box and thought [Wow, Finn has better taste than I ever gave him credit for]. The star was delicate, simple, and perfectly Rachel.

"It's nice, isn't it?" Finn asked softly. Kurt nodded wordlessly. "Well, I've decided that I'm not going to give Rachel the necklace. After the Christmas tree lot, she would definitely get the wrong idea."

"I agree." Kurt tried, but he couldn't quite hide the impatience in his voice. "This is nothing new since your email, Finn. Why did we need privacy to discuss conclusions you've already drawn?"

"The football team is really good this year, Kurt. I think we might even win the championship," Finn's chest swelled with pride. "And I'm the quarterback, so I was thinking that maybe one of the freshmen Cheerios would date me when we get back from winter break."

[Well that's a crappy plan] Kurt thought, but since he didn't want to piss Finn off he asked delicately instead, "Is there a particular girl you have a crush on, Finn?"

"No," the teen shrugged, "but any freshman would work, right? I mean, Rachel would be ticked off."

Kurt struggled to maintain a calm tone instead of screaming, because honestly, his step-brother was such an idiot! "Finn, there is no way you should start dating some teeny-bopper Cheerio just to get back at Rachel. Do you truly not understand why she made out with Puck? She plays a great game, but Rachel has no self-esteem when it comes to relationships, and she already thinks that you're more attracted to ANY OTHER GIRL IN SCHOOL than her. If you had a crush on someone, it would be different. That would be moving on. This is just cruel. I don't care how much she hurt you, if your only motive in dating someone else is to hurt Rachel, it makes you the asshole. You already slept with Santana. Which, by the way, gross and I PRAY you used a condom. It's a horrible plan, Finn."

"Jeez, Kurt, just shut up, will you?" Finn snapped back, stopping Kurt's mini-rant. "I thought you'd be more supportive and stuff, like a BROTHER."

Kurt softened a little. "Finn, all I'm saying is that maybe you should leave things alone for awhile. I know you're not actually a bad guy, so I just want you to think things through. I... I'm going to go have coffee with Rachel and Mercedes in a couple days. I won't go if it's going to upset you. Is that supportive enough?"

Finn shrugged. "I think you should go, Kurt. I don't want Rachel not to have any friends or anything; I just want her out of my head and out of my heart, you know? I thought a new girlfriend might help."

Kurt sighed. "I don't really think it works like that, Finn. You can't replace your feelings for someone with just anyone who comes along. If you wait long enough, I think it'll hurt less and then you'll look up one day and your feelings will be gone." [That's what happened to my crush on you] he reflected silently [Besides, I'm going to get you back with Rachel if I can just keep you from ruining everything long enough]. "Let's just watch the movie, ok?"

"Fine with me," Finn mumbled.

Kurt managed to crack a few smiles and laugh at Will Ferrell's antics, but when he and Zooey Deschanel started singing _Baby, It's Cold Outside,_ Kurt stopped paying attention to the movie and just daydreamed about what it would have been like to kiss Blaine that day in the commons room. He was intensely focused on remembering Blaine's warm eyes and playful shoulder bumps when Finn shook him and suggested that he head back to his own room if he was that bored. Kurt smiled apologetically. "Sorry Finn, too much studying and late nights."

"Nah, it's cool," the other boy insisted. "Um. I'm sorry I took out all the Rachel crap on you. I guess I understand what you're saying, and I promise I won't date anyone just to hurt her. But if I start liking someone, that's ok, right?"

"Of course, Finn," Kurt smiled. "I'll see you in the morning, ok?" [and I'll make sure the next girl you like is the last girl you liked] he schemed silently.

* * *

Blaine sat on his bed and stared at his phone, willing it to buzz with a text from Kurt. He just needed something to go right in this crappy, crappy day. [A freaking set of handkerchiefs!] his mind screamed at him as he gazed sightlessly at the screen and let the tears drip heedlessly. Suddenly, his mom's arm was around his shoulder, pulling him close into a hug.

"Hey kiddo, can I just apologize again for my father's crappy behavior?" she asked sadly.

"'S not your fault," Blaine muttered tonelessly.

"I just don't understand why he's like this. He has always been so proud of you, Blaine. It just makes me so angry when I think about the great relationship he's giving up with you." His mom's breath smelled slightly minty from Lauren's hot chocolate, and her shoulders shook the same way they did when she was fighting her anger on behalf of one of her clients. Blaine looked at her, loving her even more because she defended him so fiercely.

"I try not to let it bother me, but it's just so unfair. And it's not the gift, even though that was pretty crappy of him," Blaine admitted. "I miss fishing with him, and the inside jokes. I don't understand why he can't remember who I am now that he knows this one thing about me."

"I don't either," his mom admitted. "But, if you don't mind my asking, why are you staring at the phone? You know you can always call David or Wes and they'll talk to you, even on Christmas Eve."

"I was sort of hoping to hear from someone else."

"Oh," and suddenly his mom's tone sharpened into what Blaine thought of as her lawyer-mode. "Really. That's interesting. You want to hear from someone, but you can't just pick up the phone and call him or her?"

"I...I don't want to do this right now, Mom."

She lifted an eyebrow at him but backed off. "Well, you've had a rough day, so I will hold my curiosity at bay somehow," she sighed and hugged him close again. "Too many secrets aren't good though, sweetie."

"I know."

"Well, you'd better clean up and come down to dinner or I'm never going to be able to keep your dad out of here, and he'll tickle it out of you."

"I'm seventeen years old, Mom."

"Has that ever stopped him before?"

Blaine smiled, because it hadn't. "I'm coming. Just let me wash my face."

"Great. We're having a canasta tournament after dinner, and we're playing for Lauren's car fund this time. Maybe you can head back to Dalton in a new Mustang convertible." She got up and headed to the door, and then almost under her breath, she added, "Just call him, baby."

Blaine stared at his phone again, but got up to wash his face still undecided.

* * *

Kurt woke with moans and breathless whispers still echoing in his head. "Kurt! Wake up, it's Christmas! Presents in ten minutes!"

"There is no way I can be done with my moisturizing routine that quickly, Finn!" he yelled, realizing who was on the other side of the door and coming back to reality with a bump.

"For Pete's sake, just grab a robe! Mom always makes gingerbread pancakes for breakfast; you'll have plenty of time to do whatever you want in between. Now get out here or I'm coming in and dragging you downstairs to admire the tree you made us move four times!"

"No!" Kurt panicked. "I'll be down, I swear. Just give me a minute."

"Good!" Finn whacked the door one last time for emphasis, and then took off down the stairs, sounding like a herd of elephants.

Kurt pressed a hand against his stomach, trying to quiet the grinding need still churning from the dream. Dear God, that dream…the images that flashed in his memory were full of pale skin and murmured words of love, but overall it had just been blindingly erotic. It wasn't Kurt's first sexual dream, but it was the first time his lover had had a name. Those dark eyes, that scent and voice could only belong to one person.

Out of curiosity, Kurt checked the time on his phone. [7:16 in the morning? Finn is crazy…or 5 years old!] Kurt thought before he noticed the unread text message that had come in at 2 am.

_ Hey, Merry Christmas. I miss you. We're still having coffee in two days, right? Already, I can't wait to get out of Cincy. Hugs- Blaine._

Kurt froze, torn between wanting to call his friend and see what was wrong and wanting to hide under the bed when just thinking his name caused his memory to flash an image of what Blaine had looked like shirtless in the dream last night. That needed to resolve itself quickly or they were in for some embarrassing moments back at school. [Better to face the thing head-on] he mused.

_ Hey, Merry Christmas to you, too. I will call and finalize the coffee meet with you later today, but now I need to go or Finn is going to have a temper tantrum at not opening presents. How did a toddler get stuck in such a tall body? _ Kurt hesitated a second, then added: _I miss you, too. It's weird not seeing you at least twice a day!—Kurt _

He startled again when the door cracked a little. "Hey, son, are you ok?" Burt asked. "I know this isn't our normal Christmas routine. If you want, I can hold Finn off with some cookies or something until you get ready. And if you're upset about the Christmas breakfast, I'm sure Carole would love help in the kitchen."

"Don't be silly, Dad," Kurt assured him. "I'm fine; just moving slowly because it's still the crack of dawn on a **holiday**. I'll be down in a second."

"Ok," Burt commented and started to pull the door closed. "Hey Kurt? It's nice to have you home."

Kurt swallowed hard. "Great to be home, Dad. I like Dalton, but I miss you guys." The door closed, and Kurt pulled back the covers to face a new holiday tradition.


End file.
